The former life of the Musical Theater Basel

Published on 6/29/2016 by

In the building where the Lion King and the Phantom of the Opera were staged to resounding applause, things were much quieter up until the start of the 1990s. The Musical Theater Basel was once an exhibition hall that looked back on a long history.

The building that now houses the Musical Theater was constructed as Hall 107 on Riehenring back in 1958 by Basel architects Franz Bräuning and Arthur Dürig. Its most striking feature is its shed roof, with ceilings suspended from nine reinforced concrete frames. Ever since then, with just one brief interruption, Hall 107 has formed the northern end of the line of halls that starts on Exhibition Square.

In 1994/95, Hall 107 was converted into a Musical Theater by Basel architects Burckhardt + Partner. With the exception of the fly tower that protrudes upwards, the building was not touched on the outside. The conversion was performed as a house-in-a-house construction. And so the former Hall 107 still stands as an architectural gem amongst the remaining exhibition buildings today.